“Improved my results-focused management capability”

Rajabo, Staff of Progresso AssociationMy name is Rajabo Momade Cimalawoonga, I live in Lichinga, in the province of Niassa, in Mozambique. In September 2016, I joined the Progresso Association to manage, at the provincial level, the Girls Inspire project, “Learning, I Can Change,” an initiative for women and girls funded by COL.

I found the objectives and goals of this project to be noble in the problem of premature marriages that puts Mozambique, my country, in 10th place in the world and first in Southern Africa with very frightening numbers/rates of girls who drop out of school and marry At an early age, so I accepted the challenge to make a contribution to the eradication of this problem.

Although I already had some experience of a few years ago as a social activist, I soon realized that this project was challenging: (i) firstly because of the problem the initiative proposes to solve that is culturally sensitive and difficult to control and manage because it involves not Only the question of knowledge but of individual and collective behavior and attitudes; (Ii) secondly because of the socio-economic context of the target group: Girls and women, many of them vulnerable in rural communities; (iii) thirdly because it should contribute to this change through education, a noble area but many of the victories Do not like to try or attend.

But behold, the opportunity was soon. So early on the answer to my challenges came when, through the use of the Community-of-Practice platform, and online technologies such as Gootomeeting and Webinar, I joined Girls Inspire’s global team to share experiences of practices and challenges, Learning or consolidating knowledge through the various experienced actors in the shared world, each doing something, sometimes similar and sometimes different, but all for initiatives for girls and women.

I have learned from COL to value the team, achieve success, and easily share knowledge with the team of facilitators and partners at the district and community level in order to develop local capacity, autonomy, security and trust in all, with a view to Objectives.

In project management, I now feel that I have improved communication and shared learning with the team through the use of FluidSurvey and SurveyGizmo technology; This improved our perception as a team on how to address the issue of premature marriage and how to collect qualitative data through case studies, evidence of change in the community.

Today I feel that this project has improved my practice of managing the project and managing the main problem that the project aims to solve: Premature marriage of girls and women.

As a manager of the field team who lives the challenges of the project day by day, I choose the most significant change that this project has brought to me: more than improving project management practice, this project has also helped me to improve Management of the problem (of premature marriages) and influence change, as I feel that it is increasingly the community itself that takes the lead in managing the problem, reporting the cases that happen and taking action to combat evil.

Communities are increasingly confident and confident in the project and have become friends with the Girls inspires initiative and are leading the changes. Before they were afraid to talk about the problem, to report the cases or to take initiatives to prevent them. Today they easily report or report problems and this facilitates the stories of the case studies.

Today I lead the approach focused on results better.

I can see positive changes within the team and in the communities that are evidenced through positive attitudes, positive behaviors of the different actors such as gender trainers, adult educators, teachers, tutors and members of the community gender committees as well as the girls themselves And own boys. I understand that all of this is possible because Girls Inspire empowers and inspires.

With Girls Inspire I learned that the team is an integral and important part of making change happen. I will share my learning with the team and hope to inspire girls themselves and communities to be leaders in their own change and community development changes.

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Comments ( 2 )

Edson, thank you so much for sharing Rajabo’s story. I’m impressed with his commitment to address child marriage in Mozambique and his dedication to continue building his skills on monitoring & evaluation and the Community of Practice. It’s inspiring to read about his journey – thank you! We are lucky to have him as part of our M&E group.

Edson Rufai

15 Aug 2017

Wow. Thank you so much dear Charisse.

We’re glad you enjoyed it. This is the result of the work that COL has developed in our country.

Best wishes
Edson

About

GIRLS Inspire is a project of the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), funded by the Government of Canada through the Global Affairs Canada office and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Australia, with the aim to end the cycle of child, early and forced marriage and to address the barriers that prevent women and girls’ economic participation. The project focuses on Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Mozambique and Tanzania. Read more about who we are…